I was a little disappointed in the amount, or maybe the lack of amount, of interactive content.  Maybe I missed a lot of it.  I was just kind of roaming willy-nilly. And, since you can’t bring up a map navigation is a little more difficult. I will initially be working with a school in California to create a forensics science group.

I was also disappointed that I couldn’t find anything else to wear and no animation overrider (AO).  The newbie walk drives me crazy.  But all things in their time (I hope).  In the mean time I need to figure out a way to transfer what I can – stuff I’ve made – or recreate it, and learn to make at least clothing.  I never wanted to make hair but I might have to if this doesn’t get any better.

However, I am really excited to be there and I can hardly wait to get to meet the kids. Oh, my avatar there is CloweyNMUUS Skoolaborators.

This summer Biome II may turn into Mars. Or at least a sky platform above it. The graduate course, Fundamental Concepts in Science will be exploring the essential big-pictures concepts that are involved in the possibility of creating a colony on Mars. I’m still planning how this will pan out – maybe someone has ideas.

Then in the fall the Forest will be set up for point-quarter diversity indices.  I think it will be a good. It’s a great technique used by ecologists that is easily translated to older elementary kids.

Finally, I am waiting to get an avatar in the K-12 virtual environment Skoolaborate (http://skoolaborate.com). I hope to help teachers with their projects and work with kids.  Plus that will give me a unique opportunity to share with my graduate students how Second Life is being used in education. I’m excited.

I’ll be posting “office hours” where I’ll be at what time so you can find me.  I’ve been off and on but this will give some set times for me. I’ll be inworld other times but you can find me these times for sure.  For now I will be in Second Life on Thursdays from 8am SLT to 10am SLT.  I will also be inworld on Thursdays from 2pm SLT to 4pm SLT (as Clowey Greenwood).  IM me since I’m not sure exactly where I’ll be.  Once classes start later in the summer these times may have to change.

I will be in the Reaction Grid, on the island of Lowe learning on Thursdays from 11am SLT to 1pm SLT (as Clowey Greenwood).

Bird Slide Show from the Tree of Life Animal Room

The plant room is coming along beautifully as you can see by the snapshots.  I will be adding some more informational items soon.  I also put in a couple of places to sit – one for regular, human-sized avatars, and another for tinies (like me in these pictures).

Biome's Tree of Life Plant room facing back

Biome's Tree of Life Plant room facing front

Base of the Tree of Life:  http://slurl.com/secondlife/BIOME/70/140/54

Animal Room in the Tree of Life on Biome

Winter comes to Biome II

On Biome I decided we needed a nice cozy foresty place to enjoy.  I added more trees included some oaks I made from sculpted parts and some nice seating around.

More forest comes to Biome

I also met an amateur mycologist, George Sporg, (George Sayers in real life) who is helping with our fungi room in the tree of life.  He has sent me some amazing photos and they will be a great addition.  The photo below is of one of the UP’s favorite fungi – a morel.   In his own words, “Here are a few pictures of the common yellow morel i.e. Morchella esculenta — It should be noted that this is a taxonomically troubled genus and depending on the company you keep referring you morels as such could spark a dangerous debate … usually the mushrooms eaten before anything like that takes place”.  I really appreciate the collaboration of people who have particular expertise or great ideas!

Common Morel (c) George Sayers 2008

Fall on Biome II sim in Second Life

Squirrels are looking for acorns to hide and the woodpeckers are active – looking for those insects that will help them through the cold days.

Pileated woodpecker on Biome II

Meanwhile I am looking for a more permanent source of funding so this amazing place can continue to grow.  Linden Labs kind of threw us a curve ball with a proposed very harsh change in pricing of Open Space lands (which Biome II is) but then backed down and made the proposition a little more reasonable.  The funding for Biome Ii is paid until August and it is my assumption given my last e-mail that no other charges will be added until then.

But to begin my design of natural things I decided to do a few very SL-ish plants.  But the plants I needed to do are not found in the Linden Library or, for that matter, anywhere on SL.  I needed specific plants from the Great Lakes region of the US, specifically the Upper Peninsula and Lake Superior shore.  I started with a photo of a “sand cherry”, a native dune plant.  I found it takes a lot of time, patience and a fine hand to take out all that background junk and leave in all the leaves and flowers that are there.  Then , the image has to be saved correctly, uploaded, put on a prim and 3 or 4 of those prims assembled to give it a more-or-less 3D appearance.  Here is my first plant – the Sand Cherry.

Found on the island of Biome are the Faculty and Student Center, a Learning Center with classrooms and Clowey’s office, a comfortable foyer, and the entrance to the enormous Tree of Life which will house displays and activities pertaining to the various groups or kingdoms of life.  A 30 meter high microscope looks down on human-size microorganisms in a 10 meter diameter drop of pond water.  In the Butterfly Pavilion you can look at electron micrographs of butterfly wings and then enjoy a leisurely visit to the pavilion where butterflies flutter about you.  You may want to study the idea of a closed system “pop-bottle” habitat or tour a coral reef with many of the groups of the animal kingdom.  And, of course, there is the famous Obstacle Course for new residents (or old who want to brush up on SL skills) to practice their walking, flying, using the camera, searching for groups and making notecards.  Planned are interactive exhibits on food webs, photosynthesis and respiration.

Biome II is new (as of October 2008) and will be dedicated to ecosystems common in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and the Lake Superior shoreline.  Currently there is a wetland area and a rock-bottom stream.  A dune area is in the process of being developed.  There is a small mountain which will have rock out croppings of our famous UP rocks.  Mixed coniferous and deciduous forests will occupy the remainder of the area.